Review: One Step Too Far by Tina Seskis

One Step Too Far by Tina Seskis
Published by William Morrow on January 27, 2015
Genres: Thriller
Pages: 304
Format: eARC
Source: the publisher (egalley)

Emily Coleman had the perfect life: a beautiful home and a wonderful marriage. Yet, one morning she decided to get up and leave that all behind.

Now living under the alias of Cat, she has created an entirely new life in London. No one knows her secret, yet Emily/Cat can't rid herself of the guilt her decision has created. The memories that rage in her mind prevent her from creating the new life she hopes for.  When her secret is revealed, it launches a downward spiral certain to send readers reeling.

One Step Too Far is, without a doubt, an intricately plotted thriller. Readers, through flashbacks to her past, learns about the woman behind Emily. An identical twin, she never really connected with her sister, Caroline.  Their battles raged on long before their birth, exacerbated by her parents being unaware of the existence of a second child. Thus, their mother never really connected with Caroline and that, coupled with the additional stress of a struggling marriage, had a clear impact on the two sisters.  Growing up, the two sisters can’t be anymore different, Emily growing into a successful young woman and Caroline, subconsciously still burdened by her unplanned and unwanted existence.

The reader isn’t aware of what forced Emily to make the decision to leave her life behind, instead forced to follow her path to a new life with guarded trust.  As a mother and wife myself, I couldn’t help but contemplate what it would take to leave my life, as I knew it, behind.

And then the truth is revealed. And I was furious. Suddenly, the book took on a completely different meaning and feel.  I felt betrayed, lacking trust in everything I was reading. All this build-up and I felt as though the resolution/ending was rushed. There’s nothing like having a big secret revealed to you, only to be left hanging, wanting more. If this wasn’t an egalley read on my iPad, I might have thrown this book across the room.

Additionally, the secondary characters seemed to have been created for nothing more than filler, specifically the character of Cat. She becomes a close friend and confidant to Emily. Readers go back into her past, as well, and learn about what led her to her current place in life. I kept waiting for a connection, only to be let down.

Obviously, reading a book is a completely individual experience. It could be that my feelings/response to to this book are unique and everyone else will sing this book’s praises.  Yet I wouldn’t be a quality reviewer if I didn’t share my honest feelings about this book.

So, take my feelings at face-value. Maybe you’ll love and appreciate what was created in this book. Unfortunately, I cannot.